Dissapointed in Asus recently

jtanwanteng, you've got to keep in mind that Asus does not have the branding power of Apple or IBM/Lenovo. I'm sure they can design something similar to a MBP, but they won't be able to sell it at the price they need to make it profitable.

The gaming capable MBP starts at $2000. So base on what you'll "gladly pay" for an Asus, you're pricing the Apple brand at a $300-500 premium?

My advice...buy an Apple and don't wait for an Asus.

 

I wish people knew more about what they were saying before making fools of themselves. You know that Asus has made the Apple products, the PS3, computers for Dell, and many many many more, right? Lets look at the "thin" MBP - then the V6j. The V6j was just as thin, but even lighter weight with world class materials. Not to mention the V6j and the W3j have nicer latches - magnetic. They never get in the way, look classy, and always work (how could a magnet fail?). The MBP is nice, and you are paying a premium for the Apple, but Asus has made computers that are nicer. Then they made the G1 and C90...and this thread started.

 

Caleb, i know asus is a major ODM that has produced for everyone. The V6J and the W3J were fantastic parts but are now outdated. This has nothing to do with production side of the business and everything to do with the current design and finance team behind ASUS's "own brand" products. I am saying they changed course and like the OP, i am disappointed. Simply updating the V2S or W3J platforms to handle a 8600GT (V2S) or santa rosa + 8600gt(W3J) would be a major major step in the right direction

Eugenes, I don't set the macbook prices, Apple does. It is not worth $2600 to me. Lenovo sells a t61p 14.1" non-widescreen with a crippled quadro 570m for about 1500-1700 with a decent config. They make plenty of money on that part, i would buy a widescreen, full 570m/8600gt version in a heartbeat if it existed.

oh yeah, the only other thing i can't stand besides the price of the MBP is the 1 button touchpad... PITA

 

Just wondering, how is the 570m crippled on the T61p? Lower core/mem clock? DDR2 ram instead of GDDR3? I've got a 15" WUXGA T61p from work, but haven't had a chance to run any games on it.

Definitely agree with you about the 1 button touchpad.

 

Has anyone here ever owned an Asus desktop? Or at least heard of them? They're known far and wide to be a solid choice for a gaming desktop. Could it be that the technology is finally out there for asus to make good gaming laptops and they just happen to be having a go at it? I seriously think that Asus is trying to extend its reach in the markets by crossing the gap between gaming and affordable laptops with their G and C90s series. This also represents the focus of their development programs because today's gaming technology is tomorrow's mainstream technology. The lessons they elarn about power and speed now can be applied later to a high-mobility long battery life notebook. Gamers are also known to damage their components faster due to overclocking, high heat, hardware intensive games...more stuff is likely to break and it is likely to break faster than for someone who doesn't game. The feedback asus gets from their gaming laptops will be a tremendous help to them for all their future lineups. If enough gamers say that the turbo memory was crap, guess what asus won't do anymore?

Now why asus can't provide battery life is beyond me. I don't work there, I don't know what goes on in their labs. Maybe Asus has decided that it can't compete successfully with long battery life notebooks so it chooses to focus more on power than longevity. Asus still has to make a profit and if they just can't make a winning 4 hour+ battery life notebook then what motive is there for them to push out an inferior product?

Let me ask a counter question to everyone asking about the bad battery life - would you rather have a better asus notebook with less battery life or a sub-par notebook that was crippled in every way but got 4 hours and up on a charge? Cause it seems to me asus decided that people were more likely to buy their better quality, more powerful, lesser battery life notebooks than risk sending to market a weak machine with good battery life.

 

Ok my c90 was a bit over 1000 savings over the MBP. Now thanks to the magnesium alloy the MBP is that thin, also the LED is helping save battery power. (ALso the mac os like I've been saying, run the MBP on vista/xp and watch the numbers drop but thats an OS issue). Like I said obviously the MBP has some advantages. Some of you are taking it like I said the mbp is a piece of trash and thats not what I am saying. If it didnt have any pros then the laptop would be a flop. Its a good machine but has a terrible price erformance ratio.

1.3 inches to 1 inch? Are you kidding me. That really makes me wish I was .3 inches taller since thats such a big deal. Yes the weight is great but the dimensions are nothing spectacular. I see no reason why the MBP is considered innovation. It uses LED which is why its thinner and lighter and magnesium alloy. Magnesium alloy has been done before. LED is still expensive right now so other companies have not implemented them yet.

The turbo engine looks fine and actually stands out and looks unique and I get questions and comments about it all the time so its your preference. Ports? No e-sata, no hdmi, no media card and only 2 measley USB ports?

I find your last paragraph funny (no offense) because you have it completely backwards. Stamping the apple logo on anything instantaneously means a premium (i.e. IPhone, Ipod) and they are the one charging 1k more for a gaming notebook (don't deny any laptop with the most powerful gpu for a 15.4 inch is not a gaming laptop) that performs worse than my c90.

So my c90 is .3 inches thicker and a pound and a half heavier but it has alot more ports, a higher res screen, major overclocking ability and performance that will blow away the mbp and Asus is the one charging a premium?

 

jtanwanteng what is the longest period of time you have used both a macbook (any kind) and an asus laptop (again any kind)? My school had a mass number of macbooks as well as dell laptops and I bought a C90s with my own money after seeing how the macbook "Meant for students" was meant for students whose parents would blindly hand money over to them. I see no "value" in a macbook. I see "features", I see "uses" but I can see that in other laptops and for less money. And I'm also a fairly tall, well built person, I can carry around my C90s no problem. If that extra few lbs and .3" hurts you that abdly it'd be cheaper to go lift a few weights or better yet, a C90s rather than spending 1000$ for a lighter computer.

And I know I haven't owned one personally but having been using mac products for school since like 6th grade, I still see no reason to buy one considering how much apple feels like charging. The specs are good, just not for the price. And since you're striking me as a person who will buy a macbook no matter how much anyone else says otherwise - leave this thread now. We're not going to convince you otherwise but you're not going to convince us otherwise, all you're doing is turning this into a flame war.

 

I've owned a Powerbook G4 and iBook G3 from Apple, and I'll just say that the current Macbook Pro is easily the best laptop they've made. Features per dollar, its a huge improvement for Apple who often lag behind in the hardware department, and it continues the Apple tradition of being a laptop which has design considerations not implemented anywhere else that practically improve the user experience and provide stunning looks.

Comparing it to competing models from other companies, I would say there are two schools of thought to consider.

The first school of thought considers features per dollar to be the most important criteria, and therefore the MBP would not be considered as useful for its value as a C90, T61p or a 8510p. Just because it has a backlit keyboard, magnesium alloy, stunning design, and an LED screen doesn't justify its pricing, because these features are not as beneficial as including TV-tuners, more ports, higher resolution, etc.

The second school of thought would say that these special design implementations, because they do not exist in any other laptop on the market in that class, are enough reason for Apple to charge a premium because you are getting something truly unique with Apple. I would agree with this as well, because when you own an Apple you know they are one of a kind. Exactly what jtanwangten said in his post about the unique aspects of the MBP gives a good summary of why Apple is such a unique and cherished brand, I can't really even think of any analogy to other markets the way Apple operates in the computer market.

I also owned a V6Va from Asus which I found excellent, and it was probably the closest thing to the Apple's I've owned, though still worlds apart. I think Asus are capable of positioning themselves as an alternative Apple, but their current lineup seems to be leading them on an entirely different path.

 

Exactly - one side just can't convince the other because the two laptop brands are just different. And there's nothing wrong with that - this is great. This is the free market system in action and this is what will spur development and growth in the industry. The problem that the OP was pointing at is that Asus appears to be hanging its brand focus to more power and less battery life and mobility among other things. Apple has always been one for a good battery life notebook, even the iBooks back when I was in elementary school could go for hours without a charge. But Asus just decided that they could make a better product by focusing mroe on features and power and performance per dollar rather than looks and pure mobility.

I just have one tiz with Zam's post - I see people with iPhones, iPods, iMacs, and Macbooks everywhere. I'm actually more unique by getting a C90s than by getting a Macbook. Not saying the macbook is bad by any means as has been stated earlier in this thread that yes they are nice computers. But nothing gets a good stare quite like a turbo engine howling out the back of your laptop

 

Maybe the updating of components (cpu/gpu) but not moving forward with chassis, etc. design is one of the reasons for the degradation of battery life seen with recent Asus machines??

 

Apple has become a status symbol in our culture so take that as you want. Such as the creative players compared to ipods which are reviewed and ranked very similarly but Ipods are the fad so what can you do?

I think my main reply to the thread is what are other companies doing that Asus isn't? I didn't mean to go off on a tange about the mbp until someone mentioned it.

About the battery life its estimated with aero running a laptop (depending on its hardware) can take a hit of up to 20% on battery life compared to xp. Even then Mac OS has battery life compared to xp.

 

It seems the whole thing is starting to move a bit off track. Even the people that are supporting Asus are pointing out areas where they are a bit disappointed. It seems this is no longer "Who is disappointed with Asus and why?" but rather "Lets argue about if Asus is on track or not, with a side of MBP, please."

 

I love how when I read sites like Engadget or Gizmodo Apple somehow comes up in every single post. And when companies like Asus, Meizu, or Microsoft come up they are instantly bashed. Please don't tell me moronic Apple fanboys are coming over to our awesome Asus forum and ruining it for us.

I see enough of Apple everyday in my school, and while I do not disrespect their quality and components, I think the Macbook looks like a child's toy in my honest opinion. And as everyone else said above, my Asus G1s is at least $400 cheaper than any equal MBP... Now if everyone had a budget of $2000+ for a laptop, then maybe I'd consider buying one since they are great machines. Now, please leave the "Asus" forum for Asus conversation. /end rant

Thanks,

Eric Huang

 

You think I am an apple fan boy! Boy, you should get your head checked. I own an Asus notebook, and have never considered buying apple products. You ought to get yourself out of this forum before you cause more problems.

 

Haha.. No, you totally misread or misunderstood my point. I only highlighted your post because I agree with it...

 

Ok, good, I was gonna be worried about you...

 

Yeah, I probably should have noted that I was quoting you not because I thought you were an example of all of trolls....but because I totally agree with you. My experience with owning my Asus G1s has mostly been a positive one and I continue to hope Asus will come out with more innovative and interesting products to differentiate from the current saturated laptop market.

 

I'd agree that Microsoft is bashed almost universally (comes with being one of the biggest companies in the world and having a near-monopoly on operating systems), but I haven't seen Asus bashed regularly and I've never heard of Meizu.

 

Asus is usually bashed about battery life.

 

I think that about 1.5 years ago they were OK. My V6j got 4 hours of usable life, and that was with reasonable settings. My W3j gets 5+ hours with reasonable settings (both batteries). I don't understand why those are bad. I will admit that the newer notebooks are atrocious though.

 

Asus is bashed for doing what they do best and not trying to force a square into a slot fit for a circle. I've said why I think they're doing what they're doing and if it means they can live to fight in that ring of high-battery life laptops again some other day, then more power to them. And I know that a few high life models are out there, I just don't know if they're what people normally get.

I found this model on newegg - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220180 and at 4ish pounds and 4 hours of battery life it's something that Asus can say they tried with but I don't know if it's what everyone wants. I know I like my 15.4" screen and might like either a 17" or 13.3" at least but 12/1" is just too small for my tastes.

 

I don't agree with the statement that the ASUS focus on performance while disregarding battery life, is the way to go. Making a laptop with bad battery life is like making a car with bad wheels; that is to say, battery life is an essential feature in any laptop that is not a desktop replacement.

Maybe it is their direction, maybe it isn't; but if it is then it's the wrong direction.

 

BTW, Meizu is a reputable Chinese MP3/Mp4 manufacturer. They've released several solid models which sell decently well in the US. There's a Fan site at meizume.com. Sorry for the off topic post, but I'd also love to get like 3 hours on my G1s hahaa...